China's MEP checks 5.5 million households on coal-to-gas switch

Reuters Staff

1 Min Read

BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) has sent more than 2,000 inspectors to check the coal-to-gas or electricity switch projects at 5.54 million households in northern China, the MEP said in a statement on Sunday.

Inspections come after provinces warned of gas shortages, partly due to a bold move to curb coal consumption.

Of 4.74 million households that completed the switch, about 426,000 of them were experiencing gas shortages, according to the ministry.

By Wednesday, all the residents have been ensured heating by adding gas supplies and allowing them to burn coal.

According to the MEP, authorities in the north of the country have converted 795,000 more households to gas from coal-fired heating on top of their 2017 targets allocated by the central government.